1. Field
This application relates to personal storage units, specifically to small enclosures similar to a locker.
2. Prior Art
In workplace and community living environments there has long been need to adequately safeguard personal valuables while one is away from the work or living space. In the workplace, there may be a lockable desk drawer available for use, but the space inside a drawer can be limited. There may also be a storage unit in a separate part of the building requiring valuables to be stored out of immediate reach and sight. In most community living environments, such as residence halls or barracks style buildings, there are few options to safely store small personal items of value, leaving them exposed and potentially subject to theft. Presently, there are commercially available “lockbox” type enclosures varying from inexpensive, plastic, and marginally protective file storage units, to quite expensive and heavy strong box or vault like units, most of which require either a power source to operate electronic locking devices or incorporate sophisticated lock and key systems. Some designs require mounting between wall studs which is problematic in a public building.
While there are a variety of small portable enclosures available that are lockable, these are still subject to theft due to the fact that their general size allows for the units themselves to be removed from the work or living space. The enclosure described in this application can be secured to non-removable surfaces, such as a desk or bookshelf, which currently exist in work and community living spaces thus eliminating the threat of either valuable items or the unit itself from being carried away.
Due to the increased prevalence of valuable personal electronic devices, there is now a heightened need for their safe storage as well as the need to recharge these items while keeping them secure in the process.
The purpose of this application is to introduce an article of manufacture which provides a convenient location for the simultaneous safe storage of various personal items and an internal charging capability for electronic devices. Inside this embodiment is an electrical power supply unit that allows for recharging of personal electronic devices while they are stored inside the unit. This embodiment requires no electrical power to function properly as a storage device, yet it provides power for other electrical devices to be charged.
Furthermore, most small storage enclosures consist of a single space inside in which to store the items placed within them. This embodiment includes vertical and horizontal partitions so that items need not be stored one on top of the other, thus reducing the potential for damage to items while they are being stored. The horizontal surfaces also have an applied non-abrasive, non-slip protective surface to further reduce the potential for scratching or marring of valuable items stored inside.
This embodiment also has an internal mechanism allowing for the securing of items that are too large to be stored inside, such as but not limited to, a laptop computer, via any readily available cable lock, thus providing an element of external security as well.
While individual examples of prior art may exist which include a single feature described above, the novelty of this invention is that it provides an integrated array of features not currently available from any other personal storage device. These and other advantages will become more apparent from a consideration of the ensuing description and accompanying drawings.